Waste Not! The Frugal Value of “Free.”

by Judith Warrington, JRA Communications Coordinator
Here’s a resource worth conserving: your money. Consider these suggestions for conserving water, enriching your garden and saving money.

Create a compost pile. Why put vegetable peelings and rinds down the garbage disposal when they could be a source of nutrients for your garden? Fine Gardening offers this equation: Every pound of “garbage” down the disposal = 8 gallons of water and vegetable matter. Most garbage disposals use approximately 4 gallons of water per minute. Instead of using extra water to flush fruit and vegetable waste down the drain, create a compost pile or purchase an enclosed composter. You’ll have free organic material to enrich your garden soil.

Mulch. Mulching plant beds helps retain moisture in the soil, meaning less watering is needed. If your locality offers free mulch for pick up, take advantage of it. Rake up your pine needles and use them as mulch around your acid-loving shrubs. Whenever possible, leave grass clippings on your lawn to decompose instead of bagging them. You’ll be adding nutrients for your lawn. If you do bag your grass clippings, add them as green matter to your composter or compost pile.

Collect coffee grounds. Save the grounds from your morning pot of Joe or ask your favorite coffeehouse to save their grounds for you. Many shops already bag up their used grounds for gardeners! Check for them by the door. Used coffee grounds are great for your garden, make a good addition to your compost pile and earthworms love them.

Install a rain barrel. Using a rain barrel means “free” water if you pay utilities. If you have a well, this type of rainwater harvesting will help conserve water in case of a drought later. Either way, using a rain barrel helps lessen the amount of polluted runoff coming off your property.

Start a plant exchange. Spring and fall are good times to divide overgrown plants to give them renewed vigor. Set aside a Saturday afternoon when gardeners in your neighborhood can bring their extra plants on one location. Swap plants and offer growing advice. While you’re at it, set a date for next fall’s exchange! It’s also a good way to recycle your black plastic pots. Check with your local nursery or hardware store to see if they if they accept used pots for recycling.